work in Auckland, NZ?

[hazlinh]

We are contemplating relocating to NZ for a while....just wondering if anyone who's moved there from UK or anywhere else and could share some advice or info...eg what's it like in Auckland...what's the std of living like...things like that

or wellington even

hazlinh dh and I are both from Auckland NZ living in London and were back for a month at xmas. how long are you planning on going for. For an idea of rents/house prices check here and for food prices this link should be able to give you an idea click browse .
If you want to ask anything else feel free to CAT me. There are others who have gone your way who might be helpful in letting you know about the transition involved.

thanks for those, chuffed, but those links dont seem to work!!

i haven't really thought of for how long, and all that, in fact it's just an idea that we are toying with. i mean, its not like i've got the job already or anything like that.

Were u living in wellington? what's a good place to look at and is rented accommodation cheap? would i need a car to get around and if so, what are the prices of second hand cars like?

Presuming I do get the job, would it be easy for my husband to get a job as well?
and how much monthly income would i need to realistically live on? in case my husband becomes a house-husband! (I have a one-year-old dd)

What's CAT and how would i go about CATting you?

thank you so much for all your advice

oh doh sorry, you were in auckland. am going blind/mad with stress

hazlinh ... I am in Auckland .... Come and be my friend!!!
If you were coming here with a good British salary you are laughing ....
But, salaries are relative. My DH earns less in pounds sterling than he did in the UK but it goes further here (ie, I don't have to work and in the UK I did).
Auckland is the most expensive part of NZ so looking at general stats about average wages and house prices don't match up .... the national average salary in NZ is $45,000 a year ... but in Auckland you would need AT LEAST $60,000 to live relatively comfortably but it is still tight (that is one salary that is) ... if you are both working on the average then $90,000 is plenty ....
House prices in Auckland are phenominally high ... just like they are in London compared to the rest of the UK .... I don't know how people like teachers and nurses can afford to live here. But then you do have cheaper areas and silly posh expensive areas ....
I like it here ... kiwis are nice and friendly as a whole ... Auckland is very multicultural, big maori population, pacific islander population, loads of South Africans and Brits and Chinese, Koreans, Japanese ....
Weather at the moment is great ... mid summer ... but can get very very very wet in the winter .... wetter, even, than England

hiya ghosty!!! would really love to ...!!! NZ sounds lovely already.... but i didnt know it could get THAT wet!!

HOWEVER, the house-price/salary disparity thing sounds scary... I am contemplating going for a job in Wellington tho...and I hear it's slightly cheaper than Auckland?

but i'm hoping that if I do decide to go for the job, that the offer will be high enuff for my husband not to work...cos then he can be a stay at home dad...and he's quite keen to be one...(so he says)!!LOL.

but yes, i understand what you mean about London. I spent nearly half my life in London and I still dont understand why house prices (and everything else) are ridiculously high.

I'm glad to hear Auckland and Kiwis are multicultural..was initially quite worried about the racism thing (me and dh are Malaysian) but I'm sure its probably the same as any other multicultural city? eg London

if however, my husband needed to get a job, would it be relatively easy for him to get one? he's a system analyst (computer geek!!) and whats the cost of childcare like? (I'm dreading this one as have cheap labour and mum and mil in Malaysia!!)

sorry try again with those links realestate and for food woolworths

don't know why the links won't work...try www.realenz.co.nz and www.woolworths.co.nz
Car prices you could get an idea with www.trade-exchange.co.nz

Agree with ghosty on the cost of living some things are cheaper and some are more expensive. It think childcare is cheaper than in London but couldn't compare it to malaysia.

You would struggle in Auckland without a car and even in Wellington although probably a bit easier it would depend where you were living.

On the job front I think there are tons of jobs around at the moment as I read that NZ has the lowest rate of unemployment in the developed world at 3%.

immigration points system has changed now and I think you get more points for choosing to work outside akld and wgtn
I would recommend Wgtn as I'm from there, very cultural, great eats and drinks, coastline everywhere (mind you nz feature that!) but it is really windy!!!!
We looked at going back instead of moving within uk but instead moved over in uk.
still not sure we did the right thing at times.
Standard of living is better and costs less, food is fresher, the water in the taps is fresh, not recycled (pls tell me this has not changed LOL)
The only race problems I ever saw were between maoris and polynesians...